Are you a user or a customer?
When I go to a restaurant and order a meal I’m their customer. I’m trading my dollars for a service that they are happy to provide me. I’m also their user since I’m the one consuming the food.
When I’m checking my Gmail, tweeting to friends, or perusing articles on quartz I haven’t paid for anything. I’m a user of the site, but I’m not the customer. I’m their user. They provide me with a free service so they can sell my data and attention to the highest bidder.
When I’m buying ads on Facebook — targeting millennials in Brooklyn who have an affinity for single origin coffee and make over $150k per year — I’m a customer. I’m trading my dollars for their service (advertising).
Think about the services you use every day. Are you the product or the customer?